Reinforced cover flange for containers



Jan. 28, 1969 H. F. DRNEC ETAL v REINFORCED COVER FLANGE FOR CONTAINERS Filed NOV. 20, 1967 United States Patent O 2 Claims ABSTRACT F THE DISCLOSURE A container of relatively thick, foldable paperboard having side w-alls, end walls, a bottom, `and cover panels hinged on' the upper edge of each side wall, each cover panel having a fold line near its free edge, one or more metal or plastic staples secured in the panel across the fold line and bent together withthe paperboard to form a flange, the flange being integral with the panel, the staples retaining the flange at a predetermined angle with the panel and allowing retention of the flange in the interior of the container When the cover is closed.

BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION Field of the invention:

This invention relates to a container made of relatively thick, foldable paperboard and a method of making the same and, more particularly, to a container having a reinforced cover panel flange where reinforcement is provided by the use of metal or plastic staples, and a method of forming the same.

The prior art The containers having cover panels formed with anges are known in the art and are used in todays packaging industry The -advantage of such containers lies in the relatively small quantity of paper consumed in the manufacture. When the container cover panels Iare closed, the ange, which is formed at an angle with the panel, must be situated in the interior of the container to effect proper closing of the cover. Heretofore, however, the ilanges did not maintain proper angular relationship with the respective cover panel and, therefore, did not retain their position within the container, but overlapped on the top thereof causing the container to open. It has been attempted to correct this situation by constructing anges of greater thickness than the panels. But this proved to be a wasteful construction due to the -additional paperboard required.,

The construction and method of the present invention overcomes the disadvantages known in the prior art and providesfor an etfective closure for a container of the type described without substantially increasing the manufacturing costs of such a container and utilizing a lesser amount of paper as used heretofore.

SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION The present invention overcomes the disadvantages of the prior art and provides for a construction of properly closable container which remains closed until it is desired to open the same. Generally, the container is formed of relatively thick, bendable paperboard or libreboard and comprises side walls, end walls and a bottom. The cover of the container is normally constructed of two panels which are hinged at the top of the side walls, and which are provided with a fold line located inwardly adjacent the inboard edges thereof. One or more metal or plastic staples are secured in a panel across the fold line and are bent together with the paperboard to construct 'a ilange which maintains a predetermined angular relationship 3,424,369 Patented Jan. 28, 1969 ICC with the remainder of the panel. This langular relationship is retained when the flange is positioned within the interior of the container when the cover panels are closed.

As a modification of the embodiment of this invention, one or more openings may be provided through the panel at the fold line before securing the staples therein, so that the staples, when placed in the panel, overlie the openings. The provision of the openings relieves the strain on the paperboard under the bent staple.

DRAWING FIGURE 1 is a perspective view of the container of the present invention showing a portion of one of the cover panels in an open position; and

FIGURE 2 is a sectional view taken generally along the line 2 2 of FIGURE 1.

While thisv invention is susceptible of embodiment in many different forms, there is shown in the drawing and will herein be described in detail, an embodiment of the invention with the understanding that the present disclosure is to be considered as an exemplication of the principles of the invention and is not intended to limit the invention to the embodiment illustrated. The scope of the invention will be pointed out in the appended claims.

Referring now to the drawing, more specifically to FIGURES 1 and 2, there is shown a rectangular container generally designated 10. The container has side walls 11 and 12, end walls 13 and 14 and a bottom 15. The walls and the bottom are interconnected with one another in the usual manner. A pair of cover panels 16 and 17 are hinged on the upper edges of the side walls 11 and 12, respectively. Since cover panels 16 and 17 are identical in construction and function, a detailed description of only one panel will be presented herein.

Referring now to the panel 17, it can be observed that the panel is provided with a fold line 18 extending longitudinally in the panel. A ange 20 is formed at the fold line 18 to be positioned in the interior of the container 10 when the cover panel 17 is in a closed position. The flange 20 is integrally formed with the panel 17 and constitutes an angle of less than with the panel 17. The method of forming the ange is described hereinafter.

One or more metal or plastic staples 21, having suicient strength to hold the ange 20 in its bent position, are positioned across the fold line 18 by being secured in the panel 17 and flange 20 in such a manner that one end of the staple penetrates the panel, while the other end penetrates the ange. The provision of staples 21 insures retention of the desired angle between the flange 20 and the panel 17 when the flange is in its downward position, that is, within the container 10.

In order to minimize the strain exerted on the bent paperboard under the staples 21, small openings, or holes, 22 may be formed in the fold line 18. When the container is formed with such openings 22, the staples 21 are so positioned that they overlie the aforementioned openings.

As seen in FIGURE 1, the end wall 13 is formed with an opening 23 which corresponds to an opening 24 in the end wall 14, best seen in FIGURE 2. The openings 23 and 24 are provided for insertion of hands while carrying the container.

As best seen in FIGURE 2, the end Wall 14 is formed with a locking indentation 25 which secures the tip 26l of the ange 20 (best seen in FIGURE 1) within the container when the cover panel is closed.

In the formation of this container, after the blank has been suitably formed and scored and the fold line 18 provided inwardly adjacent the inboard edge of the cover panel, openings 22 may be made at the fold line extending through the entire depth thereof. A desired number of staples 21 is then secured in the panel across the fold line 18. After the staples are in place, they are bent tgether with the edge portion of the panel 17 to form the ange 20 having a predetermined angular relationship with the panel 17.

The container of this invention may be totally or partially erected at the plant of the manufacturer or at the plant of the user. The formation of the flange and openings and securing of staples can be performed either at the plant of the manufacturer or at the plant of the user.

Without departing from the scope of the present invention, the container may be formed with a single cover panel (not shown) hinged on the upper edge of a side wall and extending `across the top of the container. The formation of the flange, insertion of staples and provision of openings in the fold line in the single cover panel is identical to those described heretofore in connection with panel 17. When the container is closed, the flange on the single cover panel is positioned within the container adjacent the side wall of the container opposite the side Wall on which the panel is hinged.

We claim:

1. A container formed from relatively thick, foldable paperboard comprising:

(a) side walls, end walls and a bottom;

(b) at least one cover panel hinged on the upper edge of a side wall and extending across the top of the container;

(c) said cover panel having a longitudinal fold line located inwardly adjacent its inboard edge;

(d) a ange integrally formed with said panel at said fold line at a predetermined angle with said panel;

(e) at least one staple positioned across said fold line for retaining said panel and said flange at said predetermined angle.

2. A container formed from relatively thick, foldable paperboard comprising:

(a) side Walls, end walls and a bottom;

(b) at least one cover panel hinged on the upper edge of a side wall and extending across the top of the container;

(c) said cover panel having a longitudinal fold line located inwardly adjacent its inboard edge;

(d) a flange integrally formed with said panel at said fold line at a predetermined angle with said panel;

(e) at least one staple bent at said fold line for retaining said panel and said ange at said predetermined angle;

(f) a relatively small opening extending through said panel at said fold line and underlying said staple.

References Cited UNITED STATES PATENTS 2,047,809 7/1936 Usinger 229-49 2,933,228 4/1960 Guyer 229-49 X 3,095,137 6/1963 Reynolds 229-44 3,226,007 12/1965 Thies et al. 229-44 X DAVID M. BOCKENEK, Primary Examiner.

.U.S. Cl. X.R. 

